Nov. 28 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. gained the most during a two-day period in New York trading in at least 28 years as the automakers consider cutting debt and labor costs to win government aid.

GM, the largest U.S. automaker, increased 47 percent for today and Nov. 26, according to data compiled by Bloomberg that go back to July 1980. There was no U.S. trading yesterday because of the Thanksgiving holiday. The gain in the period for Ford, the second biggest, was 62 percent.

“We envision the current Congress will authorize a short- term bridge loan that carries” GM, Ford and Chrysler LLC to the start of President-elect Barack Obama’s administration in January, Himanshu Patel, a New York-based analyst at JPMorgan Chase & Co., said in a note to investors on Nov. 25. He rates GM and Ford shares “neutral.”

The stock gains come as the two automakers prepare plans to submit to Congress on Dec. 2 to make a case for federal loans. Detroit-based GM said earlier this month that it may run out of cash for operations this year. Ford has said it has “sufficient” access to funding.

GM is considering shedding its Saturn, Saab and Pontiac brands, according to people familiar with the matter. The Detroit-based automaker already had said it was seeking to sell its Hummer division. GM has eight brands in the U.S.

GM today gained 43 cents, or 9 percent, to $5.24 at 1:15 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. Dearborn, Michigan-based Ford rose 54 cents, or 25 percent, to $2.69. This year, GM has declined 79 percent and Ford dropped 60 percent.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alex Ortolani in Southfield, Michigan, at aortolani1@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: November 28, 2008 13:26 EST